The list of vitamins can be kind of confusing, what with all those B vitamins and a random K thrown in. But every name has its story.

Hosted by: Hank Green
———-
Dooblydoo thanks go to the following Patreon supporters — we couldn’t make SciShow without them! Shout out to Christopher Prevoe, Justin Ove, John Szymakowski, Peso255, Ruben Galvao, Fatima Iqbal, Justin Lentz, and David Campos.
———-
Like SciShow? Want to help support us, and also get things to put on your walls, cover your torso and hold your liquids? Check out our awesome products over at DFTBA Records: http://dftba.com/scishow

Or help support us by becoming our patron on Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/scishow
———-
Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet?
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/scishow
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/scishow
Tumblr: http://scishow.tumblr.com
Instagram: http://instagram.com/thescishow

Sources:
https://books.google.com/books?id=1CMHiWum0Y4C
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3593520/
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2236198/
http://onwisconsin.uwalumni.com/features/the-birth-of-vitamin-a/
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23183299
http://www.clinchem.org/content/43/4/680.long
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/983.html
Video Rating: / 5

Do Vitamin Supplements Really Work?

Follow us over to It’s OK To Be Smart to find out about the weird science behind the placebo effect: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcPwIQ6GCj8

Subscribe! http://bit.ly/ACSReactions

You’ve seen them in late night commercials and at your local pharmacy—little pills that claim to cure your cold, help you wake up or maybe help you lose weight. Vitamin and mineral supplements are everywhere and generate billions of dollars in revenue in the U.S. each year. But do they really work?

Find us on all these places:
Subscribe! http://bit.ly/ACSReactions
Facebook! http://facebook.com/ACSReactions
Twitter! http://twitter.com/ACSReactions
Tumblr! http://tumblr.com/ACSReactions

Music:
Funk Delite
Nylon Flares

Producer:
Elaine Seward

Writer:
Sam Lemonick

Executive Producer:
Adam Dylewski

Scientific consultants:
Francisco Tomás-Barberán, Ph.D.
Darcy Gentleman, Ph.D.
Sophia Cai

Sources:
Should you take multi-vitamins? http://www.berkeleywellness.com/supplements/vitamins/article/should-you-still-take-multi
Prenatal vitamins: http://www.webmd.com/baby/guide/prenatal-vitamins
Industry revenue: http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424127887324392804578362073624344816
Large multivitamin studies showing no significant benefits for healthy people:
http://annals.org/article.aspx?articleid=1789253
http://annals.org/article.aspx?articleid=728199
http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=211978
http://annals.org/article.aspx?articleid=1767855
http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/97/2/437.long
Some experts recommend multivitamins as “nutritional insurance”:
http://www.health.harvard.edu/mens-health/do-multivitamins-make-you-healthier
http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/01/30/382587987/study-sheds-light-on-benefits-of-multivitamins
For those with diabetes, supplements can help: http://annals.org/article.aspx?articleid=716096
Adverse effects: http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMsa1504267
Fish oil claims not supported by research: http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/03/30/fish-oil-claims-not-supported-by-research/ http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/fish-oil-supplement-research-remains-murky/
Choline: http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/mic/other-nutrients/choline
Other sources: Trials for supplements don’t show adequate evidence of benefits
http://www.nhs.uk/news/2013/12December/Pages/Study-finds-vitamin-pills-have-limited-benefit.aspx
http://www.health.harvard.edu/alternative-and-complementary-medicine/the-arguments-against-dietary-supplements
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/2014/06/do-vitamins-work/index.htm
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/fact-or-fiction-vitamin-supplements-improve-health/